Yesterday I was part of a large group of birders gathered at Parkgate on the Dee Estuary and waiting for high tide. These high tides can sometimes cause spectacular flooding of the entire saltmarsh causing small mammals and all birds to flee from the rising water. Yesterday wasn’t a very spectacular show but we had…
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Paul Leyland – Heineken Hoverfly
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Not many hoverflies have English names and even this one has a fairly recent history. Due to its long proboscis, up to 13mm, it can apparently reach the parts other hoverflies can’t, this coupled with a popular beer advert, made the name inevitable. However I think most hoverfly enthusiasts will still use its Latin name,…
Wild food (12) – Beech mast by Ian Carter
This is an abundant food source in years when the seed sets well, and it supports huge numbers of birds and mammals in Beech-dominated woodland. It’s true the seeds are small but it’s the numbers that are important. This year, locally, I’ve found a rough average of 30-40 per square metre under mature trees based…
Sustainable dilemmas (3) – my old car
My car is over 13 years old, and I’ve had it for around eight years. It still has a dent in it from where a Muntjac Deer ran in front of me. I’m afraid it’s a diesel, so it’s polluting in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and in terms of human health risks. That’s not…
Guy Shorrock – Puffin
The ‘Clown of the Sea’ is no laughing matter The Atlantic Puffin – familiar, comical and extraordinarily popular. During my bird watching youth I considered this a common species. So, within my short lifetime, it is hard to conceive the catastrophe that appears to be unfolding as populations of puffins and other familiar seabirds –…